January 6 Menu

Breakfast: cereal

Snack: animal crackers and cheese sticks

Lunch: peanut butter and honey sandwiches, tangerines, cookie

Snack: cranberry orange muffins

Recipe--Cranberry Orange Muffins (adapted from Reader's Digest Kitchen Secrets)

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup wheat germ

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 ground allspice

1 1/4 cups buttermilk

1/4 cup bean puree

1 egg, separated

1 tsp grated orange zest

1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries

Combine dry ingredients in large mixing bowl. In small bowl, whisk buttermilk, bean puree, egg yolk and orange zest. In separate bowl, beat egg white until soft peaks form. Add liquid ingredients to dries until just combined, then gently fold in egg whites and cranberries. Divide between 12 muffin cups. Bake at 400 for 20 minutes, or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Dinner: black bean soup, sour dough garlic bread

Recipe--Black Bean Soup (adapted from ourbestbites.com)

1 T olive oil

4 large cloves garlic, roughly chopped

3/4 C diced carrots (about 2 med carrots)

3/4 C diced celery (about 2 ribs)

1 C diced onion (about 1 sm-med onion)

2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained

1 3.5oz can green chilies

2 cans low-sodium beef broth

1 t kosher salt

1/8 tsp black pepper

1/2 t chili powder

1/4 t cumin

1/2 t dry oregano leaves

1 bay leaf

Optional Toppings: sour cream, tortilla chips, grated cheese, chopped cilantro, etc.

Combine olive oil, garlic, onions, carrots, celery and beef broth in crock pot. Cook on low 4 hours. Add remaining ingredients, cooking on low 4 more hours.

Place soup in a blender. (You could use an immersion blender in place of this step) Place lid on blender, but remove the stopper in the lid to let heat escape. Place a paper towel over the hole to avoid splatters.

Puree soup until completely smooth. Optionally you could pulse until a semi-chunky soup is achieved. Squeeze in the juice from one lime and pulse to combine.

Ladle into bowls and top with desired toppings. Serve with extra lime wedges. Makes about 8 C soup.